This study aims to map the cognitive structure of pre-service English language (EL) teachers about three key concepts related to approaches and methods in language teaching so as to discover their learning process and misconceptions. The study involves both qualitative and quantitative data. The researcher administrated a Word Association Test…

This paper aims at shedding light on what students can "construct" when they learn science and how this construction process may be supported. Constructivism is a pluralist theory of science education. As a consequence, I support, there are several points of view concerning this construction process. Firstly, I stress that constructivism…

This paper draws attention to the literature in the areas of learning, specifically, constructivism, conceptual change and cognitive development. It emphasizes the contribution of such research to our understanding of the learning process. This literature provides guidelines for teachers, at all levels, in their attempt to have their students…

The main purpose of the study was to compare the effectiveness of 5E learning cycle model based instruction and traditionally designed chemistry instruction on 10th grade students' understanding of state of matter and solubility concepts. In this study, 119 tenth grade students from chemistry courses instructed by same teacher from an Anatolian…

The prevailing model of school knowledge is bounded, verifiable, controllable, and external to the knower, reinforced by textbooks, curriculum guides, and standardized tests. A better vision of schools is one in which multiple and diverse voices are heard, and knowing as a process is valued over knowledge as a product. (JOW)

Describes a study of Taiwanese 14-year-olds' (n=48) cognitive structures derived from the instruction of basic atomic physics. Finds that even academically above-average students tended to use relatively lower-level modes of knowledge construction, focusing on reciting or describing specific factual knowledge in physics. (Contains 27 references.)…

Evidence for the superiority of guided instruction is explained in the context of our knowledge of human cognitive architecture, expert-novice differences, and cognitive load. Although unguided or minimally guided instructional approaches are very popular and intuitively appealing, the point is made that these approaches ignore both the structures…

The demise of the behaviorist paradigm and the rise of the social, cognitive, and interactionist models of second language acquisition (SLA) have led to the understanding that constructivist mechanisms are part of the process. Given the variety of empirical findings and understandings research in the field has yielded, this study attempts to offer…

Method is presented for displaying the sequential and multirelational ideation of scientific narrative elicited from respondents. The flow map provides a figural representation of the flow of information, the points in the flow where multirelational and recurrent linkages are made, and the time required to retrieve and express the information at…

Hypermedia as a learning environment complements traditional instruction as it places the student at a higher level of control. Instead of "wait and see" what the teacher expects the student to learn next, hypermedia stimulates the student to become aware of his/her own cognitive needs and interests. This paper presents a combination of notions…

Examined 8- and 10-year olds' understanding of the unique features of and potential relations among mental activities. Found a developing tendency to organize mental activities on the degree to which memory was a component of the activity. Results suggest that a constructivist theory of mind develops in later childhood. (AA)

In the literature, learners' cognitive development is mainly discussed with respect to changes in learners' content-dependent knowledge (conceptual change or growth). Additional dimensions of time and complexity may also be taken into account to describe cognitive processes in at least three dimensions. We discuss these three dimensions of…

Learning differences or disabilities can be best understood and addressed within the holistic/constructivist theory of knowledge construction and the reciprocal evolution of cognitive structures. Learning differences manifest themselves in the spirals of mental structuring activity that guide relational thinking. Such a perspective focuses on…

A powerful way of understanding something new is by analogy with something already known. An analogy is defined as a mapping from one structure, which is already known (the base or source), to another structure that is to be inferred or discovered (the target). The research community has given considerable attention to analogical reasoning in the…

Presents a concise introduction and overview of "constructivism." Constructivists assert that knowledge is constructed by individuals; constructivists advocate classroom procedures that encourage students to identify the subjectivity and biases of existing interpretations and to arrive at their own conclusions. Examines four hypothetical teacher…